BEIJING - China National Offshore Oil Corp, the country's biggest marine oil producer, is negotiating with Uganda to participate in the African country's first refinery, adjacent to the Lake Albert Basin.

CNOOC, together with British oil firm Tullow Oil PLC and Total SA of France, would jointly invest in the project, which has a total projected cost of $1.5 billion, Elly Karuhanga, chairman of the Uganda Chambers of Mines and Petroleum, told China Daily on Wednesday.

He said the parties were still discussing the division of investment.

The refinery, which is expected to start operations by 2015, is being built in conjunction with exploration of the basin, which will supply much of its oil.

The three companies investing in the refinery will have a one-third interest in each of the basin's three blocks.

CNOOC said on Tuesday evening that it had completed the long-awaited $1.47 billion acquisition, almost a year after it signed the sale agreements in March 2011, as disputes on the production-sharing agreements had caused delays.